Accidentally in Love with…a God?(Accidentally Yours #1)(59)
Author: Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

“Emma?”

“Yes? Please don’t tell me there’s more,” I answered quietly.

“I didn’t say anything,” Xavier responded.

“Emma?”

My eyes moved around the room suspiciously. “There it is again.”

“There’s what again?” said Xavier.

“Emma, I can hear Xavier’s with you. Is there anyone else? Can you go somewhere private?”

“Holy shit, this can’t be.”

“Shhh. Don’t let them know I’m here,” Guy said.

I started backing away from Xavier, stumbling over my own feet. “Nothing, Xavier. I’ll be right back. I, uh—forgot to condition my hair.” I scrambled to the bathroom, praying I wasn’t hearing what I thought.

I shut the door and turned on the shower. “Guy,” I whispered. “Is that you?”

“Who else?” he said. “Don’t tell me you’ve got another god set up on mental I.M.? That would be so disappointing.”

“Are you okay? Why can I hear you again?”

“I’m sorry to say that we have a little situation here in Mexico. Seems someone has been sharing real-time information with the Maaskab. Luckily, we’re better armed, but there are more of them than we’d thought. And since our communication channels are compromised, I voluntarily jumped into a hexed cenote.”

“WHAT!? You’re stuck in the cenote again?”

“Yes, but it’s actually a different cenote—this one is quite warmer. A bit larger too. I wish I’d had this—”

“Un-bel-ievable,” I interrupted. “I thought you were supposed to be an all-powerful deity. Couldn’t you have just conjured up a satellite phone or something?”

“Emma, I am a god, not the Creator. We cannot simply manifest objects in such a way. We manipulate energy, which is quite impress—”

Oh, jeez. I’d opened up the ego worm-can. “Well, you’re damned lucky I renewed my subscription to Guy Talk before you left.”

“Funny girl. Listen, I need you to do me a favor. And please hurry.”

***

Two cutthroat looking guards, garnished with automatic rifles across their chests, stood in front of the steel plated door. The larger man, Mr. Dark Buzzcut—I didn’t know his name since they never wore name tags—shook his head no.

“Sorry, Miss Keane. You’re not allowed in,” said Number Two Buzzcut.

“But, I have an important message. It’s for your chief, Gabrán.”

“Tell that moron that I’ll peel the skin right off his bones if he doesn’t let you pass.”

“I can’t say that. He’ll break my arm,” I responded to Guy.

“Excuse me?” said Dark Buzzcut.

“See,” I whined to Guy, “this is silly. Isn’t there a secret password or handshake? They’ll never believe me.”

“Why not? They all know that you and I are…close.”

Oh great. Did that mean everyone now knew we’d gotten frisky? Of course they did, dammit! No secrets in Uchben Land. “Fine.” I looked up at Number Two. “Listen, Guy says that he’ll peel the skin right off your bones if you don’t let me pass.”

“And that I’ll be sure the other walks with a permanent limp.”

“Oh, God. That’s so mean,” I told Guy.

“Do it!” Guy screamed.

“I hate you.” I turned to Dark Buzzcut and repeated Guy’s words in a not so very menacing voice.

“Sorry, Miss Keane. Make all the threats you want. You’re not getting past us.”

“See! They don’t believe me,” I barked at Guy.

“Emma, you have to stun them.”

“I can’t, I don’t know how to,” I pointed out.

“Close your eyes and imagine me grabbing you.”

“Ugh!” I rolled my eyes.

“Em, this isn’t a game. Lives are depending on you.”

“Fine” I threw up my hands and then shut my eyes, focusing hard. Nothing happened.

“What are you doing, Miss Keane?” asked one of the guards.

I held out one finger. “Hold on, I’m thinking.”

They looked thoroughly amused, but not the least bit worried.

“Emma,” Guy said in a deep hypnotic voice, “you are stupid and weak! I don’t know why I thought I could depend on a silly little girl like you. Of all the humans in the world, I had to get stuck with you.”

“What?!” How could he be so cruel? The anger began to blister in the back of my brain, stoking the tiny spark struggling to ignite deep inside.

Oh. Sneaky bastard, I thought as the light bulb went on. “You’re doing it on purpose. Aren’t you? Okay. Now what?”

“Now focus on that feeling and imagine it growing. Feed it.”

The tiny fire began glowing hot inside my head. I imagined my anger being wound into flaming logs, then being tossed on top of the fire. I let the flames grow and spread their tendrils through my body.

“I’m doing it! It’s working,” I whispered.

“Push it down your arms. Then—”

I reached out both my hands and both men flew against the steel door with loud, painful grunts and then sank to the ground.

“Oh, no.” I crouched beside Dark Buzzcut who writhed in pain. “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”

“Emma, what are doing? Go! Go! Before they get up. They’ll be fine, but the men here with me won’t be if you don’t hurry.”

I jumped over the two very unhappy men and then slammed the door shut. There was a large sliding lock, so I bolted the door before turning down the long, dimly lit hallway. At the end was another steel door with a touch-pad on the side and a video camera mounted above. It all looked very 007.

“There’s a door with a keypad. What do I do?”

“Punch in four, eight, fifteen, sixteen, twenty-three, and forty-two.”

“Long enough?” I mumbled while hitting the key pad.

The door clicked open. I cautiously peeked my head through the crack. Inside was a massive NASA-like control center with a tiered stadium layout. At the bottom was a podium with a large floor-to-ceiling screen behind it. The screen itself looked like something right out of the show 24 with multiple views from different cameras. Everyone was working frantically on all levels, either talking on their headsets or typing at their stations, much too busy to notice little old me.

I cleared my throat. “Excuse me?” I said sheepishly, getting no one’s attention.